Bonding
by Kisaragi Tsukamaru
Summary: Naruto and Hinata get a little closer.
1. Wandering

**Bonding**

By Misarashi Tsukamaru

Summary: Naruto and Hinata get a little closer, and Kyuubi has a little gift for her.

Warning: This will have a lemon in later chapters

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or its characters and anything written here is for personal entertainment and not to be taken as factual.

"Normal speech"

"**_Kyuubi talking_**"

'Thinking'

∞

Chapter: 1 Wandering

Naruto couldn't fathom how this day could get much worse, first he had been attacked by Sakura for _something_ he had done wrong. Then he was told that he wasn't going to be trained today because Kakashi needed to work with Sakura.

"Well why did I even get out of bed" huffed Naruto as he made his way to the Ichiraku.

With a sigh Naruto sat down and ordered a pork ramen. Half-heartedly he began to eat said food of the gods. As he finished his eighth bowl, he decided that he was finished and pulled out his cute frog wallet. Once paid for, he could have sworn that the old man looked happier than when he had arrived. 'Well as long as I made at least one persons day.' Thought Naruto.

Looking about him, he saw the glares in his directing, the people turning up their noses and walking away from him. "**_Well kit, you could just let me out and I could wipe the glares off their faces." _**Snarled Kyuubi. Letting out a frustrated sigh for the second time that day, he suppressed his sadness and put up his mask of cheerfulness.

Making his way to his apartment he had only one thought, 'I wish I had someone to hold me, but then again I would probably make them hate me.' With that though silent tears began to stream silently down his face. Luckily he had made his way to his apartment and fumbled with his keys for only a moment before heading inside and lying down in his bed.

As he lay in his bed, Naruto quietly cried to himself. It was then that he felt a sudden pain surge through his head. On a second painful surge he felt it emanate from his seal. "**_Well kit I'm tired of you being sad, so I'm taking over for awhile. Don't worry, I won't kill anyone unless I have too." _**At this statement in his head Naruto let out a soundless scream as his vision darkened and was replaced by the calm of sleep.

∞

Kyuubi quickly gained control of the boy's body as his mind recessed. As Kyuubi look about he noticed that he needed to get new clothes, the boy's orange was not how he was going to walk around.

Heading to the shopping district he felt the glares of the villagers, he decided to play with a rather angry looking woman. Walking up to her he saw her eyes narrow. Once in front to her he smiled a rather wicked grin his fangs evident and his eyes flashing to his normal slited red.

"**_Well wench, do you really want to play this game?" _**as the woman seemed to shake as he let out a little killer intent and walked away, schooling his image as she dropped to he knees as she shook uncontrollably.

Once he entered a clothing shop he found satisfactory, Kyuubi began to browse. Finding the acceptable clothing he left the store more pleased with his purchase. It was then that a thought hit him, **_'I'm in control; I should probably make the kit stronger. I don't want to go down if he's killed.'_**

Wandering aimlessly he eventually found himself at the team 7 training grounds. As he walked to the center of the field Kyuubi heard a poof and as fast as the boys reflexes allowed grabbed the unsuspecting Kakashi by the throat and pulled his face down to Kyuubi's eye level.

Kakashi had noticed that Naruto had come back, but what confused him was the new attire. Dark blue pants, and a long sleeve fishnet shirt with a dark orange t-shirt over it, but his movements were a little different so he went over to see what came over his overly loud student. Never in his mind did he imagine to be roughly pulled into the demonic gaze of Kyuubi. With a gulp he hoped it would turn out all right.

Frustrated with what he had snatched he tossed Kakashi away. **_"Oh, it's just the kits sensei. Well what can I help you with fool? Answer quickly before I decide to gut you" _**growled Kyuubi as he gazed down into Kakashi's eye.


	2. Falling

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or its characters and anything written here is for personal entertainment and not to be taken as factual.

Note: to all readers, if you don't have a fanfiction account and leave a review. Please give me a way to contact you. As such, DSHJ I than you for your opinion about Kyuubi, however this story is a fanfic and as such I am taking some liberties, one of which is the relationship between Naruto and Kyuubi.

"Normal speech"

"**_Kyuubi talking_**"

'Thinking'

∞

Bonding Chapter 2: Drive

For all of Kakashi's experience he had never once been this close to Kyuubi, or his glare. 'Shit, what have I gotten myself into. When was Kyuubi able to take control…' thought Kakashi as Kyuubi stood over him.

Kakashi then felt Kyuubi's chakra begin to leak out of the seal. He could feel the killer intent being directed solely on him. As a result he felt his panic rise and sweat begin to bead down his back.

"**_Well fool, I'm still waiting for my answer," _**growled Kyuubi, her patience growing thin.

Lifting himself up off the ground, Kakashi finally answered. "I thought you were Naruto and I came to see why he was back."

Kyuubi remembered the earlier happenings that morning and knew that Naruto was upset because Kakashi was pushing him aside. These facts made up Kyuubi's mind, and then a second thought hit him. He was going to train Naruto's body, and Kakashi was there, two birds with one stone.

With a quick grasp Kyuubi's hand was tightly gripped around Kakashi's throat. **_"Well, well, well. Lets see how long well you can fight; it has been so long since I've been able to crush a fool. That and the Kit needs a little payback." _**With that, Kyuubi launched Kakashi with quick palm trust to his throat.

As Kakashi flew back he quickly flew through a series of hand seals. Then in a puff of smoke he disappeared. Kyuubi made her way towards where Kakashi disappeared; she activated her one of her demonic abilities that she had yet to reveal to anyone since her fight with the fourth.

With her ability activated, her chakra began to lightly whirl around her. Though she couldn't see her chakra she could feel its light presence. Then without warning, with three quick pops and a bust of smoke Kyuubi was being restrained by three Kakashi's.

"**_Well, this is interesting fool. But why only use Kage Bunshins? Are you scared?" _**said Kyuubi, while lightly pulling on the bunshins.

Jumping down out of a tree, Kakashi calmly walked forward a kunai in his hand. Stopping on front of Kyuubi he placed the kunai at her throat. "I win." Spoke Kakashi in a slightly condescending tone.

"**_Oh is that right?" _**asked Kyuubi as she suddenly disappeared in a puff of smoke.

"Kuso." Cursed Kakashi as he whipped around so he was back to back with his other kage bunshins.

As he stood with his backs against his bunshins, he carefully lifted his forehead protector to reveal his sharingan eye. With its added help he could easily pick out the little things around him. Noticing a small spec of orange, Kakashi and his bunshins quickly turned and in the blink of an eye had several Kunai slamming into the orange object.

Sending one of his kage bunshins to investigate, the remaining two began to scan the surroundings. They didn't want to underestimate Kyuubi. However they were drawn out of their careful scanning by a thin red spear with a slight tail appearance pierce the bunshin sent to investigate the orange material.

'What in kami's name was that?' mentally asked Kakashi as his bunshin disappeared in small explosion of smoke.

Preparing himself he pulled out a kunai and got in a defensive stance. As his bunshins followed suit, the same red spear like thing that killed the previous bunshin suddenly came flying out of a tree and slammed them to the ground effectively destroying the bunshins.

It was then that Kyuubi spoke to Kakashi, who was beginning to feel a little out of his league. **_"Do you like my technique? You are the first person since the fourth to see it, its too bad that Naruto doesn't want you dead. You would make such an interesting plaything as you squirmed in your last moments of life. But then again, my Kit will 'always' be of higher priority than you."_**

Somewhat confused but still focused Kakashi had zeroed in of the position of Kyuubi by her demonic voice. Then in a well-practiced motion he flew through his hand seals and activated his Chidori.

Whirling towards Kyuubi he shot off in a sprint so fast that it could have rivaled Gai. As the screaming ball of lightning blasted through the underbrush he saw Kyuubi give him a wicked grin before she began to spin like a top.

Then as sudden as the Hyuuga's Kaiten, red spear chakra tendrils came of Kyuubi and spun with Kyuubi, effectively blocking the Chidori and at the same time slightly cutting into Kakashi before launching him away.

"_**I need to thank the Hyuuga brat for showing the Kit that wonderful Kaiten. It gave me the idea for this technique. Its called the Youkai Maru."**_

Pulling himself out of the ground, Kakashi felt his Chakra beginning wane. Pulling on his reserves, he began to try to form seals but a sudden pain crashed through the portion of his body that had impacted Kyuubi's Youkai Maru.

Giving himself a quick glance he noticed the lacerations on the impacted side. With the sudden revelation that the shield didn't so much cause a concussive force as a cutting force was slightly shocking.

"Well it looks as though you have the advantage here fox." Stated Kakashi, slightly swaying from side to side.

With a deep chuckle Kyuubi proceeded to perform a short series of seals. Serpent, Dog, and finally a hand seal that Kakashi didn't know.

"**_Youkai Mori no Jutsu." _**Said Kyuubi, her chakra becoming several red spears shot out of Kyuubi and raced towards Kakashi.

With no time to defend himself Kakashi used all of his experiences as a Shinobi and just as the spears were about to hit he slightly altered the penetration points of the spears. However the spears proceeded to travel all the way through Kakashi and pin him to a tree before they dissipated.

Without the spears to support his body, Kakashi fell to the ground. Coughing out blood, he slowly raised his head. Directly in his face was Kyuubi's smiling face with her demonic slitted eyes before she spoke. **_"Well fool, it looks as though I am the victor. I think I'll call your 'other' student. Perhaps she has advanced enough to get you to the hospital."_**

With that Kyuubi shot her spears out and crashed them through a tree causing it to fall. With that, Kyuubi began walking back towards town in the direction of Naruto's apartment.

∞

'**_Well kit, I didn't kill anyone. But your body has certainly gotten a workout. You should get some rest and then spend the day relaxing.' _**with that metal communication, Kyuubi gave Naruto control of his body again.

Making his way to his apartment, Naruto let his smile drop and dragged himself home. It was then that a stray thought hit him, 'Why is it that the thing that people hate me for, cares for me more than most of the village combined.' Letting out a sad sigh at this thought he didn't pay attention to where he was walking until he walked into someone, effectively knocking them to the ground.

Brought his eyes to see whom he had knocked down, he was met with pale lavender eyes. "N-Naruto-kun, are you… ok?" spoke the holder of the eyes. Hearing those words from one of his precious people, Naruto immediately broke into tears.

Falling to his knees he quickly wrapped his arms around Hinata, shocking the poor girl. It was then that she felt the tears falling on her shoulder and neck as well as Naruto's silent shacking sobs.

Drawing on her inner strength Hinata, began to try and comfort Naruto. First with gently rubbing his back after she wrapped her arms around him, then she began to whisper comforting things into his ear as he cried into her shoulder.


	3. Drive

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or its characters and anything written here is for personal entertainment and not to be taken as factual.

Note: to all readers, if you don't have a fanfiction account and leave a review, Please give me a way to contact you. As such, DSHJ I thank you for your opinion about Kyuubi, however this story is a fanfic and as such I am taking some liberties, including the relationship between Naruto and Kyuubi and techniques.

Also to everyone that has left a review, I'm sorry it has taken two chapters but thank you very much and your input is very important.

"Normal speech"

"**_Kyuubi talking_**"

'Thinking'

∞

Bonding Chapter 3: Drive

Hinata was horrified, to say the least. In her arms was her beloved boisterous Shinobi sobbing his eyes out. As she began to sooth him, he began to slightly calm down. "N-Naruto-kun… Do you want m-me to take you h-home?" quietly stuttered Hinata.

With a barely perceived nod, Naruto nodded. Helping pick him up off the ground Hinata directed him to his apartment. _'I'm glad I saw him go home when we were younger._' She thought as she helped him up the steps.

After fumbling with the keys, Naruto was led into his apartment. Whatever Hinata was expecting, the sight that she saw shocked her speechless. One of Naruto's windows was smashed and in front of it amidst the glass was a brick with the words 'Die Fox' carved into it.

Ignoring the disturbing brick's message, Hinata led him to his bedroom. One again she was met with images of horrific harassment. His entire bedroom was destroyed. His windows were broken in and the room was torn apart. His bedroll was ripped open and his decorations and pictures were littered and broken on the floor. "N-Naruto-kun…" whispered Hinata as she surveyed the room.

"I need to get new stuff again…" said Naruto, his voice seemingly devoid of emotion.

Pulling away from Hinata he began to mindlessly pick up the room. Horrified at his statement of, again, Hinata put a hand on his shoulder. "Naruto, stay here until I come back for you ok? No leaving." Demanded Hinata, her voice devoid of her usual timid tone. After getting a small acknowledgement from Naruto, she hurried out of the apartment.

∞

Sakura couldn't believe that Naruto had attacked Kakashi. She was so angry with the blonde idiot, first he couldn't bring Sasuke back and then he injures his Jounin Instructor. _'Well the Sasuke thing wasn't really his fault.' _She thought as she sat in the hospital waiting for word on Kakashi.

While she was waiting however, Kakashi was busy being healed by Shizune. As she healed the now unconscious Jounin, she noticed the strange lacerations and puncture wounds. Taking note of them, she waited for Kakashi to awaken, "This is just like a man, making a woman wait." Sighed Shizune.

She never had to wait very long, as Kakashi opened his eye. With a groan he was met with the very serious gaze of the Hokage's Assistant. "WHAT HAPPENED Kakashi?" demanded the irate Medic Nin.

"You might want to call the Hokage for this." Said Kakashi, his voice holding just a little sadness that she could detect. Leaving the room quickly, she rushed to the Hokage tower and retrieved Tsunade in just under three minutes.

But with that amount of hurrying she made a slight mistake. She forgot to tell Sakura to stay in the waiting room. As such they were followed into Kakashi's room.

It was here that Tsunade demanded that Kakashi tell her why she was taken away from her work. This was slightly taken away from because as Kakashi could clearly see, there were characters printed upon Tsunade's face. Holding in a chuckle, He began to tell the encounter with the Kyuubi. 'Dear god', was Tsunade's thoughts on the matter.

The silent tension was broken by the almost unheard whisper, "I can't believe that I was on the same team as the Demon Kyuubi."

All eyes on the room suddenly turned to a pale Sakura. To everyone's shock she then yelled, "Why the hell didn't anyone tell be that I was working with a bloodthirsty killer!"

A sickening crack could be heard as Sakura slammed into the wall. Tsunade stood over the girl as she fell to the floor. "Don't you ever say anything like that again Girl. I took you on as my apprentice because I thought that you were smart. But I seem to have made a mistake." Said the Hokage, her voice colder than ice.

It was then that Sakura began to stammer an apology, however Shizune effectively cut her off. "Sakura, you need to understand, the Kyuubi is sealed inside of Naruto. It is not Naruto but it is trapped inside of him."

They were met in with silence as Sakura began to shake where she sat. Her face pale and her eyes unfocused, with a sigh, Tsunade picked up the girl and placed her in a bed near Kakashi before she exited the room.

As she left the Hospital with Shizune in tow, she called over an Anbu member. "Bring Jiraiya, Hyuuga Hiashi, Anko and Uzumaki Naruto to my office immediately."

∞

Naruto was in a daze; he could hardly tell what was going on around him. His last coherent thought was Hinata's plea that he stay in his apartment. From there he just picked up his room and placed the glass and garbage in the wastebasket.

He just sat in the center of his bedroom after that, nothing was coming to him. His mind was completely blank; the mask that he had worn all of his life was finally cracked. The stress of people hate and the whispers of distaste had finally come crashing down.

'**_Kit you need to pull yourself together, you are coming apart at the seams.' _**Kyuubi's voice whispered in his head. However the only response the demon fox received was silence.

As he sat waiting for Hinata, an Anbu member came up behind him. "Uzumaki Naruto, Hokage-sama has requested your presence." The Anbu member was confused when he received to reply.

Moving in front of Naruto he repeated his statement. This time he received a quiet reply. "Hinata said that I was to stay…"

At this remark the Anbu was a little worried. Naruto was known for his loudness and brashness, not for being quiet. However he needn't wait for long as Hinata reentered the apartment.

"Naruto-kun, its time to go…" she said as she entered the bedroom, only to notice the Anbu member.

"Hyuuga-sama, I need to take Naruto to Hokage-sama." The Anbu requested, his head bowed in respect.

Nodding her head in acceptance of the Anbu request, she slowly pulled Naruto to his feet. "Naruto, we need to see the Hokage." She gently whispered to him as they left the apartment.

∞

Tsunade was furious when the Anbu finally arrived. But her anger was quickly forgotten when she saw Hinata leading Naruto by the hand, his eyes all but devoid of any emotion. She swore that his eyes were dead.

"Please escort Hinata home." Tsunade told the Anbu as she took Naruto by the shoulder and led him into her office.

She never heard Hinata's quiet request, because she was to focused on Naruto. _"What happened Naruto, why did you let go?" _Thought Tsunade as she led him to a small bed.

As she situated him, she turned to the other occupants who had watched this with different looks and emotions playing across their face.

It was Hiashi who spoke first, "Godaime, what happened to the brat?"

It was then that she motioned for all of them over. With a sigh, she pulled up Naruto's shirt. What they saw made absolutely no sense, the seal was in place and furthermore Tsunade hadn't checked him before she had showed them.

This time it was Jiraiya who spoke up. "Tsunade, what are we seeing here? Not all of us are medical specialists."

However before she could answer, Anko whispered a reply to his question her usual boisterousness forgotten. "The seal has been damaged."

Dead silence fell upon the room, its drapes moving with the breeze the only sound. Hiashi then activated his Byakugan, what he saw was the seal, but near the upper portions he saw the seal had cracks in it. Red chakra could be seen weaving through the seal, almost as if it was holding the seal together for some of the cracks reached almost halfway through.

However his examination was interrupted by Tsunade's voice. "I knew what happened because I can feel the Kyuubi's chakra, Hiashi you saw the Kyuubi leaking through didn't you?"

Giving a brief nod, he then deactivated his blood limit. They all looked at Naruto they noticed that he had fallen asleep, unaware of his surroundings. Giving a brief chuckle Jiraiya tried to break the tension. "Well isn't that just like him, sleeping while everyone is worried."

Before anyone could comment a loud crack was heard and Jiraiya flew across the room. Anko and Hiashi followed the fist that now occupied the space that Jiraiya's face had. The saw Tsunade's eyebrow twitching, her eyes closed.

"Well now that the pervert has been dealt with, we can get back to the matter at hand." She stated her eyes focused on the Anko and Hiashi.

After a brief pause Hiashi spoke up again. "How was the seal damaged and why has Kyuubi taken over now?"

Looking down at the seal briefly before answering, "It was damaged in his fight with Uchiha Sasuke, the seal was most likely damaged by the severe torso damage that Naruto received. As for why Kyuubi made a push for control now, I believe that the seal is finally opened enough for Kyuubi to exert some control over Naruto." Tsunade stated.

"However now that you know of the situation, what will you do Hiashi?" ask Jiriaya, his face sporting a nice shiner as he hobbled over to the rest of them.

"Nothing." Was the brief reply from the Hyuuga Leader, with that simple answer he exited the office.

Stunned by his response, everyone watched his exit. It wasn't until the doors clicked shut that they looked back to Naruto.

"Why am I here Hokage-sama?" asked Anko, her voice taking its usual tone.

'_Well it's now or never.' _Thought Tsunade before she asked a question she was dreading. "Will you train Naruto after I repair the seal?"

Spluttering over her response she was caught off guard when Jiraiya butted in. "What do you mean will she train him? I'm his teacher I will!"

With a heavy sigh, Tsunade looked straight into Jiraiya's eyes. "You need to let him go, he isn't Yondaime. He isn't your former pupil, it isn't healthy for you or him if you to try and make him into something he isn't. He needs a new start, and with someone who has a seal placed on them to help teach him the dangers they can pose." Her voice was firm as she let the last sentence trail off.

'_Am I really ready to have a student?' _ Anko thought as she watched Jiraiya's eyes become downcast. _'Well, as long as I am a better teacher than mine, it won't be so bad. Who knows maybe I could have some fun with the kid.'_And with that final thought she told Tsunade that she would train the boy.


	4. Mending

Bonding Chapter 4: Mending

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or its characters and anything written here is for personal entertainment and not to be taken as factual.

Note: to all readers thanks for all the reviews and I'm glad people are enjoying the story.

"Normal speech"

"**_Kyuubi talking_**"

'Thinking'

∞

Naruto couldn't understand what was going on. The day had completely passed him by; his last thought was going home. When he awoke he found Anko standing over him. Naruto couldn't contain his surprise and blurted out the first thing that came to his mind. "Shit it's the psycho lady from the Chuunin exam!"

After that statement he immediately rolled away from her, effectively falling out of the bed he was laying in. With heavy thud and a groan from the floor he watched Anko make her way around the bed. Before he could move again, he was suddenly hauled up to his feet, expecting the worst from the crazy lady he cringed.

As Naruto cringed, Anko felt her heart soften to the demon holder. She remembered all to well what the villagers hate could be like, '_fortunately I was older when Orochimaru left the village and I at least had one friend.' _She thought. Putting her other arm under Naruto's legs she carried him back to the bed and placed him back in it.

Seeing his look of confusion she chose that moment to talk. "Look kid, I'm your new sensei. Jiraiya will still help you with some of your techniques but aside from those, I am your sensei. As a result you will call me Anko-sensei, if you don't well lets just say that you won't walk well for a few days." her eyes taking on a malicious twinkle at her last statement.

"Umm ok Anko-sensei, but what are you going to teach me? And why would you even want too, I'm worthless." Stated Naruto his voice lowering as he spoke, till the last part was almost a whisper.

Knowing her work was cut out for her, Anko began to think about what to do with him. Knowing that she didn't have long, she quickly formulated a plan. "Look kid, you need to understand that you are worth something. Otherwise, why would Jiraiya and Tsunade care so much about you? Plus you and I have a few things in common. Those being that… the villagers don't care much for us." The last part said in a conspiratorial whisper, her eyes twinkling with mischief.

Letting out a laugh, Naruto's eyes got a little of their twinkle back to them. "Well If I can't have Jiraiya as a teacher and it has to be a woman… I'm glad… I got… you." He said his eyes slowly shutting and his breathing relaxing as he fell back asleep.

It was fortunate that he fell back asleep, because he missed the murderous look in Anko's eyes as her eyebrow took on a decidedly evil twitch. It was then that she began to rearrange her plans in her mind. _'Ok, first order of business, get his self esteem back up. Second order, retrain the brat and finally… KILL the person who made him think that women are not as good as men.'_

_∞ _

Tsunade was surprised to say the least when her border guards came into her office flanking a Sound shinobi. "Well, what can I do for you? Orochimaru sending another declaration of war or terms for surrender?" Tsunade stated, her tone mocking and condescending.

To her surprise the shinobi, shook his head negative. "No Hokage, we of the Sound Village are hereby informing you that we are hosting an upcoming exam. It will first hold a Chuunin exam for those who need to take it, and then two months later we will hold a Jounin exam. However, there are a few rules, first of all, no instructors may enter the Sound Village. Secondly, we are using the two man team formations. Should you choose to accept and participate, it will be in four months time, just send your Genin and we will take care of the rest."

With that remark the shinobi was about to depart before he was stopped with a question. "What if we have an odd number of genin? Are we then not allowing one to participate?"

"No, we will supply them with a partner, Good day Hokage." Replied the Nin, his voice curt and disrespectful.

Watching the Sound shinobi being escorted from her office, Tsunade felt her mind begin to whirl with the turn off event. Deciding to let the Jounin instructors decide on what they wanted to do, seeing as how the no instructor stipulation would surely discourage many Genin from participating from any of the Hidden Villages. With as sigh, she set back to her paper work…

∞

It had been a long day for Anko; her talk with Naruto had taken up a good portion of her day. It hadn't taken very long, but the brat was asleep for most of the day and she was required to wait till he awoke. After wards she had to talk with Jiraiya about training with Naruto.

Her day had stayed pretty much the same until she hooked up with Kurenai and went to the bar. "Everyday that ends with a 'y' should be a bar day…" drunkenly slurred Anko as she hung off of Kurenai. But for Anko, this was the only way to end a stressful day.

In the throws of her drunken stupor, she began to think about how Naruto's condition came about. With her currently limited brain capacity she decided that it was Kakashi's fault. "Yep… it's all his fault…" she said out loud, startling the near by drinkers.

As she tried to get off the stool and hunt Kakashi down, she stumbled to the ground. She then heard a heavy sigh and was helped off the ground. "What am I going to do with you Anko?" stated Kurenai as she began to lug Anko back to her apartment.

∞

It was dark when Naruto awoke for the second time that day. As he looked about the room he had a sudden feeling of loss. "I wish someone was here… even if it was the crazed examiner lady. Why was her name again? Oh yeah, Anko…" spoke Naruto, wanting to hear a voice, even if it was his own.

However his lamenting was brought to an end when the door was quietly opened and closed. Focusing on the shadow moving towards him. It was then that the moonlight bathed across the figure. He could make out midnight blue hair and smooth pale skin. As he inspected more he noticed she had subtle but distinct curves. _'Shit, it's a girl!' _cried out Naruto in his mind.

It wasn't the girl was right beside him that he looked into her eyes, what he saw was pale lavender eyes. But as he looked deeper into them he could feel himself drowning into their depths.

'**_You idiot, what are you waiting for! Take her as yours, you're obviously attracted to the bitch.' _**Voiced Kyuubi in his mind.

'She is not a bitch!' retorted Naruto in the girl's defense.

'**_But she is a female, and females are generally referred to as bitches.' _**Calmly replied Kyuubi.

'Look will finish this later.' Replied Naruto turning his attention back to the girls.

Hinata was nervous to say the least, Naruto had zoned out as he stared at her. His eyes completely focused on hers. Then just as fast as his zoned out he came back. "Ano sa… what are you doing here so late Hinata?" he asked, his voiced was laced with depression.

Feeling her cheeks starting to warm, she suppressed the urge to blush. "I w-was worried about… you, Naruto-kun…" she replied, unable to keep the stutter out of her reply, she tried to cover it up by sitting on the edge of his bed.

Naruto was shocked when she sat down, he was so confused that his mind blanked and everything that he wanted to ask her flew out of his mind. Fortunately for him, Hinata noticed his vacant expression and began to speak again. "Ano… Naruto-kun, what h-happened… earlier?" however as she asked she began to play with her fore fingers.

Upon hearing her question, Naruto looked away from her and out the window. "I don't want to talk about it…" was his only reply.

'**_Wow, that was manly of you. She's here for you and your keeping her in the dark. How you're my Kit, I don't know.' _**whispered Kyuubi in his mind.

'Who said that I wanted to be your kit! It's entirely your fault that my life sucks…' screamed to the Demon Kitsune in his mind.

'**_Do you really think that all of this is my fault kit? I wish that I could make it all better; I don't like to see my Kit so anguished. But I can't go back in time little one, I can't change the past.' _** Was Kyuubi's heartfelt reply.

While Kyuubi and Naruto were having their internal discussion, Hinata noticed tears beginning to form in the corners of Naruto's eyes. Pushing her shyness away for the second time that day, She lay herself down next to him and gathered him into her arms.

Naruto was shocked out of his discussion when he felt Hinata pull him to her. Panicking he tensed and tried to move away from her, however she had other ideas. "N-Naruto-kun, relax… j-just rest, tomorrow w-will be better. I-I'll keep you safe till then." He heard her whisper into his ear. Closing his eyes, he lightly pushed himself closer to Hinata and laced one of his hands with hers. It wasn't long before he felt sleep claim him, the gentle breaths of Hinata lulling him to sleep.

* * *

Sorry it took so long, I hit a serious block and then decided to re-write a part. 


	5. Introductions

Bonding Chapter 5: Introductions

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or its characters and anything written here is for personal entertainment and not to be taken as factual.

"Normal speech"

"**_Kyuubi talking_**"

'Thinking'

§

Naruto slowly awoke, only to find that he had dark blue silk spread across his chest and one of his arms was immobile. Using his other arm he patted the top of the blue silk only to hear grumbling coming from underneath it. Surprised, Naruto did a quick mental check to see if it was his stomach.

Reasoning himself out, he lightly moved the silk aside to see a sleeping Hinata. However his arm was still unaccounted for. Moving it slightly he tried it again, this time along with immobility he was met with a low breathy moan from Hinata.

'_Shit, this is bad…' _were Naruto's rapid thoughts. His earlier depression and zombie like state forgotten. He had seen what happened when Ero-sennin 'accidentally' touched a girl. The effect was much like Tsunade hitting him into a wall.

However he was brought out of his musings when Hinata shifted her body against him. Her cheeks took on a slight pink tinge and another gasp escaped her lips as she gently rocked her hips against his arm.

The effect on Naruto however was quite different, His face suddenly resembled a tomato and his mind shut down except for a single though that he repeated over and over very quietly, "Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit…"

However Hinata still in the midst of her dream continued to rock against his arm. However Naruto began to get aroused by the sounds and motions from Hinata. "…Oh, Naruto-kun…" she whispered in her aloud. It was then that she rocked one final time, harder than before, her thighs clamping down on his arm as she rocked forward; loud breathy gasp escaping her lips.

Naruto at this point was having a hard time keeping his cool. After having Hinata grind against him he was hard pressed not to return the favor. It was at this point that Naruto decided to go for it. Leaning a little to the side, Naruto lightly kissed Hinata's lips.

§

Hinata awoke from her dream from the sensation of Naruto's kiss. Confused as to what awoke her she immediately saw a blushing Naruto looking down at her. With a quick "eep!" Hinata dove beneath the covers of Naruto's futon.

"Did you have a… good dream Hinata-chan?" quietly asked Naruto, who was still embarrassed about the kiss.

"Y-yes my dream was very nice, w-why do you ask?" Replied Hinata, still hiding under the covers.

"Um… well, you see… hmmm," stuttered Naruto before closing his eyes to think about what to say. Then after a moment he replied slowly and carefully. "While you were sleeping… my arm and you became acquainted with each other when you pulled it between your legs."

Though he couldn't see her, he could guess that Hinata resembled a ripe tomato, and she did. Slowly Peeking her head out from under the covers, Hinata saw Naruto looking at her with a little bit of fear and a whole lot of apprehension. Hinata tried to give her best smile but it turned into a strange expression due to her embarrassment over the situation.

Naruto misunderstanding the look backed up and covered his head. Her red face and strange smile had translated into 'Time to get pounded'. "Please don't hit me..." whimpered Naruto from the side of his room where he had taken refuge.

Confused by the turn of events, Hinata said the first thing that came to her mind. "Naruto I'm only going to hit you if you're chained to the bed." Blushing at her comment Hinata decided to try again, seeing as how her previous comment only made Naruto look up with a clueless expression on his face.

"Look, N-Naruto-kun, l-lets go get some breakfast o-okay?" Stuttered Hinata, as she moved towards Naruto.

Averting his eyes from Hinata's crawling form, he barely managed a reply. "…S-sure, a-anything you say…" With a sigh, Hinata pulled him up and helped the shell shocked Naruto out of his apartment and towards the Ichiraku. She couldn't help but smile during the trip as she noticed that Naruto's gaze was drifting towards her chest and rear only to have his gaze snap forward and then travel towards its previous locations.

Just as Naruto averted his gaze for the tenth time since leaving the house, Hinata noticed Anko making her way down the street towards them. Trying to be on good terms with her instructor's friend she called Anko over. "Mitarashi-san!" she called as she waved to Anko.

§

Anko had just finished popping a sixth dango into her mouth, the previous five sticks still in her mouth, when she heard someone call her name. A little shocked that anyone would willingly call her. Looking about the street she noticed the Hyuuga heiress and her new pupil.

Making her way over to them, she decided it would be best if she removed the excess dango sticks from her mouth. After doing so she found herself in front of the two genins. "What can I do for ya Hyuuga-sama?" politely asked Anko. With the thought, _'only an idiot would piss of a Hyuuga, especially Hiashi's daughter. '_

With a cautious smile, Hinata make a request of the Jounin. "You can call me Hinata, Mitarashi-sama."

Moving between the two genin Anko slung her arms around them both. "Now where were the two of you off to? And call me Anko" she asked half hanging off of them.

"W-well Anko-san, Naruto and I were on our way to get some ramen. Would you like to come?" asked Hinata, surprised that anyone would actually comply with a request that she had made. Then with a smile, the three went to go eat ramen.

§

It was after ramen that Anko shooed away Hinata so that she could get some training in with Naruto. _'I really need to see where he stands in the grand scheme of things.'_ she thought as she sat him down in the just outside of the forest of death.

With a huge smile on her face, she asked him a few simple things. "Ok Naruto, to train you I need to know what ninjutsu you know '_or should know'_, how proficient you are at taijutsu and if you know any genjutsu. Also it would help if you could tell me what you want me to help you with, cause there is no point in training someone who doesn't know what they want."

Naruto just stared at her when she finished. As Anko sweat dropped she thought 'was that to complicated?'

Then after a moment, Naruto's mental functions kicked in and he responded. "I-i'm not that good really. The only thing going for me is that I have a LOT of chakra. Aside from that I don't know that many jutsu's, I pretty much only know Henge, Kage-bunshin and Rasengan. My chakra control is sketchy cause of the dumb fox in my stomach. As for taijutsu, I'm average and I don't know any genjutsu."

**"I heard that Fox crack kit!" **yelled Kyuubi in Naruto's mind. However before he could say anything the fox continued. **"Just tell the woman outside that I'm going to help you mold your chakra and teach you a trick or two. Now be nice or I'm going to make you want to gouge out your eyes with chopsticks." **And with that Kyuubi went silent again.

Now Anko was surprised when Naruto's eyes glazed over only to have his eyebrows knit together in concentration. Frustrated that he seemed to zone out on her she leaned forward and smacked the back of his head. While yelling, "Pay attention Naruto!"

As for Naruto, the timing of the smack was a moment after Kyuubi went silent. As he pitched forward from the hit he heard her yell at him and in a spark of his old confidence he yelled back at her. "What the hell was that for you old hag!"

Once the words left his mouth he immediately wanted to take them back, for Anko's left eye was twitching and she had a crazy gleam in her eyes. "Old hag? OLD HAG? COME HERE YOU LITTLE BRAT IM GOING TO MAKE YOU EAT THOSE WORDS!" and with that she shot towards Naruto.

As Naruto ran from Anko after scrambling from the ground so fast that it would have made Rock Lee proud, he heard Kyuubi in the back of his mind. **"I told you to be nice kit."**

To busy to respond, he kept running all the while yelling back to her what Kyuubi had told him earlier before she whacked him. Yet no matter what he said seemed to calm her and they just kept running. Finally he heard the words he was dying to hear. "Ok Naruto, you can stop now, I'm not going to hurt you."

Collapsing in exhaustion Naruto found himself just a few feet from where they had started. Turning to look at Anko, he found her looking smug. Out of curiosity he asked why. "Oi, Anko-sensei, what's with the look?"

Anko could feel he smile get bigger before she answered. "Oh nothing, just that we ran completely around the forest of death. Consider it your morning warm-up from this day forward. And now we go to your place to eat lunch."

Barely making it to his feet, Naruto wobbled after Anko. "Why do we have to eat at my place?" asked Naruto, his voice dripping with exhaustion.

Without turning around, Anko responded in a semi-irritated tone, "Because you ate twelve bowls of Ramen after getting me to pay for them Naruto." With a sigh of "oh, yeah" Naruto and Anko trudged back to town to get some food at Naruto's place.

§

Anko couldn't believe her eyes when she was in Naruto's apartment. It was smaller that she expected and to top it off it was filled with nothing but instant ramen. Whirling around to face Naruto she saw trepidation on his face. Suddenly understanding she knelt down next to Naruto and pulled him closer to her.

Looking him in the eye, she asked a question that no one had ever thought to ask him. "Naruto do you buy ramen because it is cheaper to buy than other foods?" Her question was answered when Naruto moved his eyes away from hers and looked away from her.

"**Kit, I like this one. It's ok if you open up to her, she isn't going to hurt you." **Kyuubi Whispered to Naruto.

"Yeah, I buy mostly ramen cause when I was younger it was all I could afford. So when I got to eat it tasted delicious." Replied Naruto after listening to Kyuubi's advice. Then in an almost shy move Naruto opened up his jacket and showed that it was mostly padding and that his inner shirt was bulkier that most shirts of that style.

Letting out a small gasp of surprise, Anko was surprised to see how thin Naruto really was. She doubted that anyone aside from those closest to him knew how thin her was. Lots of muscle on the boy, but very little fat, the seal on his stomach drew attention away from people looking at his figure. It also explained why Iruka, Tsunade, Kakashi and Jiraiya would be willing to fork over large amounts of their checks to take the boy out for ramen.

Making a mental decision she grabbed Naruto's hand and drug him to the bedroom. Looking about it, she saw that it was fairly spartan in its functions. Turning to Naruto again, she said something that Naruto had wished his whole childhood to hear. "Pack up Naruto, you're going to be staying with me."

Tears made there way down Naruto's face as he ran forward and hugged Anko about the waist, the impact knocking them to the floor, however Anko was to busy holding the sobbing Naruto. All that she could do was stroke his hair and let him cry it all out, while muttering that it was going to be all right.

_'I wish I could have come sooner Naruto-kun, I wish I could have come sooner. But I was still hiding from myself and my past to help.' _Thought Anko as tears silently made their way down her face.


	6. Getting Acquainted

Bonding Chapter 6: Getting Acquainted

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or its characters and anything written here is for personal entertainment and not to be taken as factual.

"Normal speech"

"**_Kyuubi talking_**"

'Thinking'

§

Naruto's eyes slowly opened, his mind telling him that he wasn't in his room or the hospital. Quickly sitting up, he took in his surroundings. 'That's right… Anko-sensei is having me stay with her. I guess I fell asleep and she carried me…' thought Naruto.

Cautiously getting up, he noticed that his things were placed haphazardly around the room. Before leaving the room, Naruto rolled up the futon that he had been sleeping on. 'I hope she hasn't changed her mind.' He thought as he exited the room and entered the main portion of Anko's living space.

Looking around he saw that it was only a bit larger that his own apartment, the only difference was that there was a second bedroom and that the dining and living area was bigger. He also noticed that there was a large design on the ceiling of the main room. Walking closer he saw that it was an actually three separate markings making up a larger one. 'That looks like Sasuke's cursed seal…' mused Naruto as he stared at the symbol.

"That is to remind me that no matter how much I change, Orochimaru will still be part of me until the day I die." he heard behind him.

Whirling around, Naruto noticed Anko standing in the entrance to the other bedroom looking up at the design, one of her hand idly rubbing a spot near her neck. After a moment she turned to Naruto, he face splitting into an evil looking grin. "Well my new roommate, now that you are living with me I expect you to help me pay my rent." Naruto almost faulted at that statement before he began to laugh when he saw the mirth in Anko's eyes.

After his laugh, he saw that Anko looking at him with a serious gaze. "Naruto, the first thing that were going to do in training is teach you a ranged ninjutsu." However before she could finish a loud whoop of joy erupted from Naruto. Bopping him on the head, she leveled him with a gaze that clearly stated that 'I wasn't done'. "Now as I was saying, I'm going to teach you a ranged jutsu, however. I do not want to even see a Kage Bunshin or a Rasengan when we spar."

"W-what? Why not? They are my best techniques." Spluttered Naruto.

"**Probably cause she wants you to learn how to fight without becoming predictable kit." **Kyuubi stated in his mind.

"Because, you need to learn some of 'my' techniques. Besides, I want to play longer, so come on." She replied with a wicked smirk on her face as she began walking away.

'Why do I thinking that this is going to hurt.' Thought Naruto as he followed Anko.

§

It was midway through the training that Naruto collapsed to the ground. Staring up at the sky, he watched as the clouds lazily drifted across the sky. Trying to sit up, he found that he didn't have the strength to since Anko had given him a vest that easily weighed at least half his body weight.

Resigned to watch the clouds, he noticed a black spec getting closer and closer. After a moment of confusion, his body forced itself to move to the side as a figure slammed into the ground that he had just occupied. With the help of the adrenaline rush he had just received, Naruto quickly got up and shielded his eyes from the dust the impact had kicked up.

'I hope I don't need to fight… I'm not sure I have enough stamina, after training I'm pretty spent.' Thought Naruto as he watched the figure stand up in the cloud and begin to walk towards him, the dust dissipating as he did so.

He saw was a fairly tall girl with jet-black hair and grey eyes that were laced with an almost burning blue color, much like the color of Neji's Kaiten. She was wearing what looked to be a dark gray jacket with a brown fur collar that was open. Her pants were regular ninja pants that shinobi such as Kakashi and Iruka wore; however hers were the same color green as most Chuunin flak vests. However her clothes had small metal eyelets placed in certain points allowing him to see what was under the coat. Naruto could even make out that under her fishnet shirt looked to be an Anbu breastplate. Her arms & legs also appeared to have Anbu shin and arm guards respectively, however they also looked off to Naruto for some reason.

"Are you Uzumaki Naruto?" questioned the girl. Upon seeing his nod, she smiled and said. "I'm Toki, pleaser to meet you."

'_Time of opportunity" _thought Naruto, _'wonder why her parents named her time of opportunity.'_

"In case you're wondering, I'm your partner for the up coming exams" she stated, her eyes roaming his body as if judging his worth.

It took him a moment to locate her hitai-ate, it was wrapped around her left thigh and was attached to a dark grey cloth instead of the usual black or blue. When she shifted her weight to offer him a hand up, he noticed that she had the symbol of Hidden Grass on her hitai-ate.

Scrambling back, Naruto quickly used Kyuubi's chakra instead of his own diminished capacity to create a couple of shadow clones and had them attack as he repositioned himself with a kawarimi.

The girl was shocked by the sudden turn of events. He would be partner had turned on her faster than she could say shit. Slamming her forearm into the nearest clone, a sharp crack permeated the air, with the clone blasting back from the blow before becoming smoke.

As she finished with the first hit, she moved on to the next clone she struck with an open palm to the throat, the crack once again sounding as she struck. As the clone popped, the remaining clones decided to dog pile Toki and pummel her, as they jumped at her, she took a loose horse stance and the air distorted around her before a thunderous boom sounded a split second later as all the clones popped and the ground blasted out around her.

Panting lightly, she waited for the next attack, but was shocked when Naruto came flying out of a tree and face planted not three feet away from her, his face doing its best to resemble a ripe plum.

Following the battered blonde projectile came what could only be described as the epitome of womanly wrath. Anko stalked up to Naruto, and lightly rolled him over with the tip of her sandal, upon his groan of protest she quite firmly stated, "Grass nin's are our allies Gaki. I get to teach you everything don't I."

Mouth in the dirt, Naruto let out a chuckle as he mumbled a "yeah ya do."

Taking all of this in Toki, let out a snort of amusement, "We'll get along just fine I think." she said, with a smile on her face.


	7. Letting Go

Bonding Chapter 7: Letting Go

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or its characters and anything written here is for personal entertainment and not to be taken as factual.

"Normal speech"

"_**Kyuubi talking**_"

'Thinking'

§

Jiraiya watched as Anko began teaching Naruto the basics motions and seals for the Daitoppa ninjutsu technique. Growling in frustration as he saw Naruto trying to learn the C ranked technique, he also watched Naruto's temporary partner running through a long series of seals as fast as possible. When she messed up the seals, and she messed up quite a few times she would start over. He eventually figured out that she was running through the seals for Karyuu Endan, a high-level fire technique.

He could feel the deep sense of jealously as he watched Anko training what was his student and his heir. _"No, not my student… and my heir died to stop the Kyuubi."_ thought Jiraiya, the loss of the Yondaime still holding tightly to Jiraiya's memories and emotions.

Watching the girl a little longer, she eventually stopped running through the seals and said her goodbyes to Anko and Naruto, being to far away to hear, Jiraiya could pretty much figure out what she said, "See you two later."

Not able to take watching Naruto and Anko anymore, Jiraiya got up from his lounging position on the tree branch he had been resting on and tree hopped back to the village proper. Feeling hungry he began to walk towards the Ichiraku Ramen Stand.

Once it was in site, he smiled remembering how the Yondaime flirt with Ayame and help Teuchi with the shop when he was younger. _"I wonder if he will be in there getting something to eat."_ He thought to himself, as he was just about to enter the stand.

Stopping dead in his tracks, Jiraiya remembered that the Yondaime had died before the stands establishment and that it was Naruto who frequented the stand. He felt the cold hands of fear grip his heart, not the fear for his life, but the fear of what had just transpired in his thoughts.

"_Could Tsunade have been right, is it possible that I've begun to think of Naruto as the Yondaime, treating him as if he was my former pupil and friend?"_ Shocked to even think such a thought, Jiraiya began the long walk to the top of the Hokage Monument.

§

Once seated atop the carved face of the Yondaime, Jiraiya looked out and upon the village that he called his home. He could see all the way across the village, even seeing the Yondaime's house. Shaking his head as if to shake the memory away, _"No, he died… he isn't here anymore." _Jiraiya reminded himself.

_"This is why I only come back every once in awhile." _He told himself, his mind and eyes drifting to places that he remembered good times with the Yondaime. Eventually his gaze drifted over to training ground where he trained the Yondaime and his teammates… who had been lost due to the complications on missions. _"Then again… the Kyuubi was a complication that claimed his life."_

Lost in thought he almost didn't hear the person coming up behind him. But he did hear the faint but familiar rustle of cloth that signified only one person. "Sens-" he started as he turned, but it died on his lips as he say Tsunade in the traditional garb of the Hokage.

Letting out a ragged sigh, he turned back to look out at the village. He felt he sit down next to him and place an arm around his neck. "It's hard remembering that they are gone isn't it." She stated, giving his neck a quick but firm squeeze with her arm.

"Yes, I don't like coming back to village. It just reminds me of what is gone and I'll never see again." Jiraiya quietly stated.

"Well, at least you came back, besides, you're the father that Naruto has never known. Isn't that good enough for you? Do you really need him to become a second Yondaime?" Tsunade asked, punctuating her question by pulling him back so that they lay back looking at the sky. _"Just like we did with Sarutobi-sensei…" _sadly mused Jiraiya.

"Hey Tsunade."

"Yeah?"

"Thanks for being… well here. I try to forget sometimes that Sensei and my stupid heir are gone… and then it hits me again, that I'll never see them again."

"You need to learn to look forward… you have become stuck in the past. Don't take this the wrong way, but I think that you've been purposely wandering the country and writing those horrid novels to keep yourself from dealing with what has happened."

"No offense taken, but they are not horrid! They are the masterpieces of the labors of a virile mans passion!"

"The only passion that ever came out of you was lust for naked women." Laughed Tsunade.

"True, but then again, I always had you to keep me from doing something truly stupid."

"And you always will Jiraiya," pausing to give his neck a squeeze before continuing. "Sensei always like us best when we got along you know. I just wish that Orochimaru learned what sensei was always trying to teach."

"That your teammates are you family and that you need to protect and cherish them?"

"Yeah…" Whispered Tsunade, he voice choked with emotion.

"Tsunade… thanks, you've always been the best friend anyone could ask for." Jiraiya's only response was Tsunade giving a harder squeeze around his neck.

Relaxing next to Tsunade Jiraiya felt a comfort of peace that had eluded him for many years, since Orochimaru was found to be a traitor to Konoha.

§

It felt like a lifetime while relaxing under the stars like Genin with Tsunade. But they eventually parted ways, her to her home with Shizune and him to wander the streets aimlessly. Deciding that a drink sounded like the best thing, Jiraiya went into the closest bar.

Ordering a midsized bottle of sake and paying for it, with money liberated from gama-chan, he looked for a seat. _"I spy with my froggy eye, something that begins with scarecrow."_ He thought to himself and made his way over to sit with Kakashi.

"This seat taken?" he inquired to Kakashi.

"No, its free."

"What has you so glum?"

"Just remember Sensei and my teammates."

That sobered Jiraiya right up, hearing the dark undertones of sadness in Kakashi's voice. _"Maybe he should get some help."_ he though to himself, looking at his glass of sake.

"Well Kakashi, the best thing to do is move past the loss and look the future."

Kakashi only looked at him as if he was mad, stark raving mad. "You of all people shouldn't be trying to give advice on loss, if anything I should be trying to give you advice."

"What's that supposed to mean Kakashi?"

"I've accepted the deaths of my comrades and that Sensei is gone. Something that you seem unable to comprehend."

"For someone who accepts the deaths of his comrades, you sure spend a lot of time staring at Obito's name."

Silence ensued after that last statement, Kakashi's eyes darkening with unbridled rage at Jiraiya's statement. After a moment, Kakashi composed himself enough to growl out, "I may look at Obito and Sensei's name at the monument, but I don't try to turn a child into a copy of a departed friend." And with that statement he stood up and walked away, leaving Jiraiya to wrestle with Kakashi's words.

§

Jiraiya found himself once again atop the Yondaime's head. Looking once again at the stars, the village and the village gates. He let out a massive sigh, "I've been running away from this for so long that I forgot I was running." Jiraiya said to the monument head he was sitting upon.

"I didn't want to deal with the pain of your passing my friend, so I just left the village and began to do anything to keep me from dwelling on your death."

Giving the stone head a pat of affection, he looked towards the Hokage tower that Tsunade lived in. "You know, if it wasn't for that flat chested woman, I think I would probably have shut down after the Old man died."

Looking down to the face of the Yondaime, he continued. "Once I found Naruto, everything became so hard for me. He is a lot like you, just so you know. He tries his hardest to keep his friends safe and always overworks himself to the point of exhaustion. Just like another blonde that I had the displeasure of training." Laughing at the last statement, Jiraiya paused, collecting his thoughts before continuing.

" I ashamed to say that I tried to make him just like you. I treated Naruto like I treated you old friend. To me, it was like you had come back from the dead and I could make the distinction between the two of you." Tears running lightly down Jiraiya's face as he continued, his hand making a swirling motion on the stone beneath him.

"I never gave Naruto the chance to be Naruto, he was you in my mind. I can see that now and can only hope to do better in the future. You may be gone, you loon… but I think I can finally say that I can let you go. You're with the Old Man, despite what they say about that technique, so things can't be that bad. Sensei will look out for you, just make sure that he save some peeping for me when I get there ok?" he quietly asked the stone face, his voice thick with emotion and tears running freely down his face.

"Goodbye kid." And with that, Jiraiya stood up and began to walk back into down into the village.


End file.
